The Mario Saga
by christopher.natcharian
Summary: The epic tale of how the Mario bros., beginning as average plumbers in Brooklyn, entered the Mushroom Kingdom, became heroes, and found true love. If you like this story, please share it with others!
1. Chapter 1: A Tall Order

**The Mario Saga**

**Chapter 1: A Tall Order**

"Luigi! Get off gaming, for crying out loud! You're wasting too much time!"

Luigi looked up from the TV, his hands still working the controller.

"Come on, Mario! It's Sunday! No one ever has any plumbing problems today, so I say, on the seventh day, rest." Luigi quoted. "Besides, I don't see you laying off the lasagna, bro."

Mario looked down at his rather portly belly. "I just happen to have a big appetite… Oh, that isn't the point! We need to be at the ready if any calls come in!" He pointed a finger at the sign outside their door:

**MARIO BROS. PLUMBING**

**YOU BREAK IT, WE FIX IT**

**OPEN 24/7**

"Mario, you're taking this job too seriously! This is our easy day – " Luigi stopped as the phone rang. Mario smirked. "What'd I tell ya?" he said. He ran over to pick up the phone.

"Mario Brothers' plumbing! Mario speaking," he said cheerfully into the phone. But suddenly, his smile turned to surprise. "The mayor!? Mama mia, hello, sir! What seems to be the problem, sir?" Luigi strained to listen as Mario's eyes grew wide. "Absolutely, sir! We're on our way!" Mario hung up.

"Luigi!" Mario cried. "Suit up."

In five minutes flat, the Mario bros. raced across town in their battered old van. Mario filled Luigi in on the mayor's dilemma. "Apparently, there's some strange noises coming from the manholes in one area of town," he said. "People everywhere are complaining, and that's why they need us to fix the noise. I say it's a leaky pipe. What do you think?"

"Sounds like an animal to me," said Luigi, shuddering. "I hope there's no alligators."

"Alligators? Ha ha, Luigi, don't be so paranoid! The sewers are just sewers, and we rule the sewers! And that's why I love my work!"

"Yeah, at least it's better than cousin J.M.'s carpenting!" Luigi joked. "Can you believe that tall tale he told about the ape stealing his girlfriend?"

"Ha ha, yeah! What a load of bologna."

The van pulled to a stop by the manhole in the exact center of town. This manhole, they knew, led to every other in the city.

"Ready to go?" asked Mario.

"Ready as I'll ever be." shrugged Luigi, grinning.

They opened the manhole and headed down.

**Let's-a go! The first few chapters will be short, but expect longer ones later!**


	2. Chapter 2: Pursuing the Sewage

**Chapter 2: Pursuing the Sewage**

The sewers were dark and wet. The Mario bros. waded through the muck in their overalls, in search of the noisy pipe.

"I never liked the sewers," Luigi shivered. "Something down here always gives me the creeps."

"Something always gives you the creeps, Luigi," Mario sighed, rolling his eyes. "When are you gonna get a backbone – Wait! Listen!"

Luigi cocked an ear, and he heard it too – an echoing _thud_ from somewhere down the tunnel.

"Follow that noise!" declared Mario. They sped up, heading in the direction of the thud. They heard another, then another. "Geez," said Luigi, "those tenants were right about the noise."

As they turned a corner, the noise got very loud.

"What could make such a racket?" shouted Mario over the echoing.

Finally, they went through an archway, and found a large chamber, at least two stories high. Platforms made of wire netting hung from the walls, leading to two pipes at the top. One of them clanged.

"That's the one!" exclaimed Luigi. As best they could, they climbed up the platforms to the pipe. It was small, only half their size. They peered in. Suddenly, a deafening _boom_ erupted from the pipe, knocking both brothers backwards, followed by a strange noise.

_Bwap-bwap-bwap!_

"Um, Mario…?" stammered Luigi, looking nervously at the pipe. "I don't like this…" But before Mario could respond, there was a definite sound of claws scraping from the pipe. Luigi yelped and dove behind Mario, who looked nervous too.

Finally, from out of the pipe, came…

A turtle.

Mario stared for a minute, then burst out laughing. "HA ha ha… Luigi, you just got scared out of your wits by a _TURTLE_! Mamma mia! Ha!"

Luigi, who was now feeling very foolish, grumbled, "Hrmph. It's not funny, Mario."

They turned again to look at the turtle, which eyed them both. Mario realized that this turtle was actually pretty large, being about a foot high.

"I wonder how this thing made all that noise?" wondered Luigi.

"Well, however it did it, it's over now!" said Mario. "We found it, and now we can – _OW!_"

Luigi gasped. The turtle had just shot its head out and bit Mario's hand!

"What the...!?" he yelled, waving his injured hand. "That's it! This turtle's going down!"

The turtle seemed to understand his words, as it gave Mario a murderous look – and let out an earsplitting screech. Mario and Luigi covered their ears as the sound reverberated around the room. A rumbling sound came out of both pipes, as the turtle began walking towards the brothers.

"Uh, Mario?" Luigi stammered. "I think we're about to have company."

As he said it, a horde of turtles poured out of the pipes.


	3. Chapter 3: Turtle Attack!

**Chapter 3: Turtle Attack!**

"Look out, Luigi!" shouted Mario as the turtles advanced on the Mario brothers. Full of fear, they stumbled back, falling off of the platform and down to the chamber bottom. The turtles poured out of the pipes now.

"What are we gonna do, Mario?!" shrieked Luigi, "We're trapped in the sewer and _we're gonna get eaten by turtles and_ WE'RE GONNA DIE – "

Mario slapped him.

"Phew, thanks," Luigi panted. "But what are we gonna do?! The turtles will bite us if we get close!"

"I don't know!" said Mario. "Give me a second…" But as the turtles made their way down, he noticed their pale bellies through the mesh platforms…

"That's it!" Mario exclaimed. "Luigi! Follow my lead!"

Mario ran underneath a platform, took out his wrench, and as hard as he could, struck the bottom of the platform, directly underneath a turtle. It screeched as the shock flipped it over on its back, where it struggled to right itself.

"Yes! It worked!" Mario shouted. "Luigi! Get up there and kick it!"

"Gotcha!" Seeing Mario's plan, Luigi scrambled up to the platform where the turtle still lay helplessly, and kicked it off as hard as he could. The turtle fell off the platform and out of the chamber, into the watery sewer tunnel below, making a satisfying SPLASH!

"Come on, Luigi! Let's teach these turtles not to mess with our sewers!" The Mario brothers ran around the room, Mario flipping the turtles and Luigi kicking them away. But more kept coming! Soon, Mario and Luigi were exhausted, and the turtles weren't stopping.

"I can't go on much longer!" Mario panted, as he feebly struck another platform.

"Me neither!" Luigi shouted back. "I can't keep running forev—Wait! What's that?!"

One of the pipes began to shake violently as something big began to come through it. All the turtles stopped momentarily, surprised, as something large and blue came out of the pipe. It was bigger than Mario's head, and landed right at his feet. He picked it up. It was a blue cube, with the letters P-O-W carved into the surface.

"Mario?" shouted Luigi, as he dodged more turtles, "What is it?"

"I don't…" Mario began, when suddenly something entered his mind. He at once saw a flash of information: _POW Block… Hit… Mario…_

"Snap out of it, Mario!" Luigi yelled, getting slower by the minute. His brother was in a trance, staring at the block. The turtles were beginning to overwhelm him, and in desperation, he screamed,

"MARIO!"

Luigi's cry brought Mario around. He looked around, saw the turtles, but felt suddenly… confident. As the turtles closed in for the kill, Mario raised his wrench and hit the cube as hard as he could.

_**POW!**_

The POW Block exploded, creating an enormous shockwave and a deafening boom, and every single turtle flipped over, totally stunned.

"M-Mario! You did it!" cried Luigi. "Wait, how did you DO that?"

"I have no idea," Mario admitted. "I just… suddenly knew what to do!"

"Weird…" pondered Luigi. "Well, let's finish these turd-les!"

"Ha! Nice one!" Mario laughed. The brothers went into action, kicking every turtle off into the water, until there was only one left.

"There's only one left!" Mario declared. "This'll be too satisfying!"

But before he could do anything, the turtle woke up! It righted itself and quickly scuttled away.

"Quick! After it!" gasped Luigi. "We can follow it to its turtle nest!"

"Turtle nest? Really?" Mario said, exasperated.

"Well, turtle _den_, then?" Luigi suggested.

"Better."

And the Mario brothers ran after the turtle.


	4. Chapter 4: Pipes to Meet You!

**Chapter 4: Pipes to Meet You!**

Mario and Luigi ran through the sewers in hot pursuit of the last turtle. Mario huffed and puffed as he ran. He wasn't used to this much exercise.

"That's *pant* one fast *pant* turtle!" Luigi gasped as he ran.

They chased the turtle down and down, through twisting tunnels and steep slopes, until the turtle rounded a bend. When Mario ran around the corner, the turtle had disappeared!

"No!" Mario exclaimed in frustration. "Where'd it go!?"

"Forget the turtle," Luigi said, "Where are we?"

They had gotten so wrapped up in chasing the turtle that they had gotten hopelessly lost.

"I can't believe it!" said Mario. "I know these sewers like the back of my hand, and I've never seen this part! How can I be lost!?" Suddenly, something caught Mario's eye – a crack in the tunnel wall. It was just big enough to squeeze through.

"Look, Luigi!" said Mario. "Maybe the turtle went through there! Let's see if we can find it!"

"Well, we don't have anything better to do…" Luigi grumbled as Mario strained to fit through the crack. Finally, after a few colorful words, with a "POP!" he squeezed through. Luigi followed, though he got through much more easily. Beyond the crack, there was only a small bare chamber. The only thing in it was the gigantic opening of a gigantic pipe. Tall enough for them to walk in without even ducking, it was a bright green color. The brothers tried to see where it led, but there was only darkness inside.

"Did the turtle go through there?" Luigi wondered.

"I don't know, but there isn't anywhere else it could go," said Mario. "Aw, forget it, that pipe doesn't look safe. We might never know where the turtles came from, but we got rid of them, and that was our job. No reason to do what doesn't need doing."

"I'm with you, bro," Luigi agreed. But just as they began to walk away, they heard a noise from the pipe – a humming noise, strangely soothing. But just after that, the humming grew louder as a vacuum of wind began pulling the brothers toward the pipe! Startled, they began to panic.

"Hold onto something, Luigi!" Mario shouted through the wind.

"LIKE WHAT?!" Luigi panicked, trying to run against the pull. But it was too late. The brothers screamed as they were picked up off their feet and sucked into the pipe.

_Bwap-bwap-bwap!_

Mario screamed as he turned head over heels, the wind carrying him down the pipe at breakneck speed. He rounded twists and turns, went through loop-de-loops, and plummeted twice. Soon, he couldn't tell which way was up anymore. Suddenly, the green surface of the pipe wall began to sparkle with light, as he went into a perfect vertical drop. Mario was genuinely panicking as he fell down and down, towards a bright white light…

Suddenly, he was out of the pipe – and fell flat on his face. As he lay motionless and took silent inventory of his bruises, he breathed in the scent of… grass?

Then the wind was knocked out of him as Luigi landed on top of him.

"Bro?" Luigi feebly asked. "You're alive! I'm alive! We're both alive! We went through the crazy pipe and we survived! WE'RE GONNA LIVE – "

Mario slapped him.

"OK, I deserved that," said Luigi, rubbing his cheek. "But where are we?"

"That's what I want to know," said Mario, taking in his surroundings. They were in some sort of cave, the stone walls appearing bluish. Was it a trick of the light? The pipe they had just exited protruded out of the ceiling.

"Great, just great. How are we supposed to get back now?" Mario wondered.

"Um, Mario?" Luigi was staring past him, wide-eyed.

"First we get assaulted by turtles. Then we get lost. And NOW—"

"Mario!" Luigi shouted.

"What?"

Luigi pointed. Mario turned around. There was the cave's opening – _wait, what's that outside?_ thought Mario. He walked through the archway and squinted in the… daylight? As his eyes adjusted, his jaw dropped in shock.

The brothers were standing on the edge of a vast grassland, with rolling green hills, and a bright, shining sun. The sky looked too blue to be real. But the real kicker: Blocks made of bricks and stone floated above the ground, and Mario could see creatures running about – not just any creatures, but fantastical things he'd never even dreamed of.

"Mamma mia…" whispered the Mario brothers.

**Things are about to get a lot more complicated! Stay tuned...**


	5. Chapter 5: The Mushroom Kingdom!

**Chapter 5: Welcome to the Mushroom Kingdom!**

Mario and Luigi stared in awe at the fantastic world they found themselves in. They were scared out of their minds.

"What… is going… ON?!" Luigi screamed. Mario was too stunned to speak. Suddenly, something rustled behind them. Slowly, they turned around, to find a small brown mushroom… staring at them, with a face and teeth. Naturally, they screamed.

"AAAH! TALKING MUSHROOM!"

"What are you?" the mushroom growled. Mario and Luigi kept screaming.

"Strange… these two look like Toadstool," the mushroom mumbled to itself. "Well, I might as well arrest them for lord Bows – "

The brothers were long gone.

"Aw, crap."

While the mushroom wasn't looking, Mario had grabbed Luigi and they both sped over the nearest hill.

"Hey! Stop right there!"

The brothers skidded to a halt in front of a turtle. But this turtle wasn't like the turtles in the sewers – it was huge! And it stood on two legs!

"AAAAH! TALKING WALKING TURTLE!"

The brothers reversed direction as the turtle ran after them, shouting for backup. Suddenly, six more mushrooms and six more turtles ran over the hill towards them! The brothers, surrounded, screamed and hugged each other, crying for mercy, when suddenly –

"GANGWAAAAAY!" A gigantic green shoe bounded, all by itself, into the crowd. As Mario and Luigi watched, shocked, the shoe leapt high into the air and with a "WHAM!" squashed two of the mushrooms flat! The turtles' and remaining mushrooms' expressions quickly turned panicky as they ran from the shoe as fast as they could. But it was too late, as the shoe leaped again and stomped on a turtle. The turtle grimaced, then with a _schloop!,_ it retracted into its shell.

"Oh CRAP!" they all yelled. But before they could do anything, the shoe kicked the shell towards them. It spun like a top and shot forward with amazing speed, and before the brothers' eyes, the shell bowled over every one of the turtles and mushrooms, and they turned to dust. Mario and Luigi were struck dumb. The shoe finally stopped, then it turned toward them. It began to hop towards them.

_Hop. Hop. Hop._

Now they began screaming again.

"We're gonna get trampled by a SHOE!" screamed Luigi.

"WE'RE GONNA DIE!" screamed Mario.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" screamed them both.

The shoe hopped right up to them, and stopped. Out of the hole at the top, rose… a smiling red and white mushroom.

"Hey, guys!" it said.

Mario and Luigi fainted.

Mario's eyelids fluttered open. "Uggh," he said groggily, "What a dream… Luigi?" A figure loomed in his vision. He was too groggy to tell who it was though.

"Is that you, Luigi?" he asked.

"No, silly!" piped the figure in a cheerful voice. "The name's Toad!"

Mario snapped awake. Suddenly he remembered everything that had just happened. Sitting bolt upright, he saw the same mushroom from in the shoe!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHTALKINGMUSHROOMPLEA SEDON'TEATMEEEEE!" he screamed.

"Oh, not again," Toad sighed. "Can you see that I'm obviously not going to eat you? I saved your fanny back there!"

Mario suddenly realized that the mushroom thingy was right. "Am I dreaming?" he asked. "Because I had a recurring nightmare just like this a while ago."

"Don't be ridiculous, Mario!" Toad replied, chuckling. "You're in the Mushroom Kingdom! In my humble abode, to be exact."

"Wait, how do you know my name?"

"The weird card thingy in your pocket."

Mario then realized he hadn't known where he was. He took a look at his surroundings. Toad's house was rather small, with only two rooms chock-full of furniture. But the strangest thing was that it seemed to be inside a giant hollowed-out mushroom. He then looked at Toad. Though he'd seemed to be just a mushroom at first, he actually had a torso, arms, and legs, and had a mushroom-shaped head. Then Mario remembered something. "Where's Luigi?!"

"Oh, you mean the other guy?" Toad asked. "Yeah, I couldn't carry both of you, sooo…"

"YOU LEFT HIM OUT ON HIS OWN?! HE'S GONNA GET MAULED BY MUTANT TURTLES!" Mario snapped.

"WHOA, whoa!" Toad stepped back. "I was kidding! Kidding! He's in the other room now – he's out like a brick. Couldn't wake him up."

Mario allowed himself to relax. "What did you say about being in the Mushroom Kingdom? And what is going on with all the mutant turtles and mushrooms?"

"_Turtles?!_" Toad exclaimed, dumbfounded. "You're really not from around here, are you? Everyone knows you were attacked by Goombas and Koopas!"

"Goombas? Koopas? Can you speak English please?" Mario said.

Toad banged his head on his kitchen counter. "OK, mister. Where are you from, EXACTLY?"

"Um, Brooklyn?"

Toad's face suddenly lit up. "BROOKLYN? That explains everything! I get it now! _You're from the real world!_"

"So… I AM dreaming."

"NO!" shot back Toad. "The Mushroom Kingdom is just as real as the real world. What I don't get is, how did you get here? There hasn't been anyone from the real world in hundreds of years!"

"You tell me," said Mario. "All I know is, I was fixing the sewers, I got attacked by relatively-normal-looking turtles, and I got sucked into a giant green pipe!"

Toad gasped. "A warp pipe!? They're impossible to find!"

"Well, how did I find one, then?" asked Mario.

"That's what I'd like to know!" said Toad. "Man, what I wouldn't give to find a warp pipe…"

From the other room, something stirred.

"Ah! Luigi's waking up!" exclaimed Mario. "I've gotta calm him down before he gets spooked by all this fantasy stuff."

"It's not FANTASY!" shouted Toad as they both entered the other room.

After a good deal of high-pitched screaming and a conversation very similar to the above, Luigi finally calmed down.

"So, if you're both here in the Mushroom Kingdom, and you came from the real world," said Toad, "then you probably don't have any weapons, right?"

Mario and Luigi nodded. All they had were their plumbing supplies.

"Well, you're in luck! I happen to have just the thing to let you defend against those Koopas and their minions!" Toad rummaged through a large chest.

"Hmm, Goomba repellent, nah; Lucky Socks, nope; Dried Shroom, yech; aha!" He pulled out two pairs of gloves and two pairs of boots. "Super Gloves and Super Boots!" They're made with 100% certified Toadstool Magic!"

Mario and Luigi looked at each other, then decided to trust Toad. After all, he had saved them before. They pulled on the gloves and boots.

"As long as you wear the boots, you can jump way high into the air, and squash anything you land on! As long as you wear the gloves, you can break bricks and open blocks!" Toad explained.

"Prove it," sad Luigi, skeptically.

"You can prove it yourself!" said Toad. "Just go on outside and jump!"

The brothers walked out of Toad's house, with Toad following closely behind.

"There!" exclaimed Toad. "Break those bricks!"

A row of brick blocks floated far above their heads. Mario and Luigi shared a glance, then Mario took an experimental hop. To his amazement, he bounded up five feet in the air! As Luigi watched, stunned, Mario took a huge leap, stuck his fist in the air, and with a "CRASH!" he shattered one of the blocks.

"Cool…" said Mario, looking at his hands. Luigi jumped next, and hit another block. But this one, instead of shattering, made a pinging sound as an outer layer of bricks fell off, revealing a brown solid block beneath. The block opened, and a large gold coin popped out. So did Luigi's eyes as he goggled at it.

"Is that… real GOLD?" Luigi marveled.

"What's gold?" Toad asked, confused. "It's just a coin. They're everywhere nowadays, thanks to that dumb Bowser." Toad's excited face turned into a look of disgust. "Boy, I hate that jerk."

"Who's Bowser?" asked Mario.

"Well, it's a long story."

"We've apparently got time."

Toad shrugged. "OK, let's go inside and I'll tell you all about him."

The brothers followed Toad inside.

**Now the REAL fun begins! Tune in next time for… whoops! No spoilers!**


	6. Chapter 6: The WHOLE Story

**Chapter 5: The Whole Story**

Mario and Luigi sat down on some mushroom-shaped beanbag chairs inside Toad's house. Toad rummaged through his bookshelf until… "Aha!"

He pulled out a gigantic, dusty book. The worn leather cover had a picture engraved into it, depicting a mushroom, a flower, and a shell surrounding a star.

"This," Toad explained, "is the history of the Mushroom Kingdom. To actually understand Bowser, you really gotta know everything. You really want to hear the whole story?"

Mario and Luigi nodded. Now that they were over their initial shock, everything seemed quite interesting.

"Okay, then!" Toad smiled. He sat down on a third chair, opened the book to the first page, and began to read.

_In the beginning, there was nothing except a star, the First Star, and an endless void filled with darkness and evil. But the Star was weak, and gave little light to illuminate the void. It could not survive on its own, so from its being it created the first beings of light: the Star Spirits. Their light drove back the darkness, and the universe was illuminated for the first time._

"Wait a minute," Mario interrupted. "How does a star create something? A star's just a star, isn't it?"

"Maybe in YOUR world it is," Toad snapped, "but I've already told you that this is the Mushroom Kingdom."

"Fine! Fine!" Mario surrendered. Clearly, Toad didn't respect him very much. Toad cleared his throat and got back to reading.

_To ensure that the darkness would not return, the Star Spirits created the Power Stars, Shine Sprites and Grand Stars, and scattered them to the far corners of the universe, each giving light and ensuring the dispelling of the darkness wherever it was. But now that the darkness was surely held back, the Star Spirits did not want their universe to be empty. The first life forms they created were the Lumas, wandering beings of energy that roamed the universe freely. But the beings had no home, so the Spirits created innumerable planets and galaxies in which they could reside. There, the Lumas flourished, and the Spirits were happy._

_Then, they noticed something peculiar. A certain planet, which had at first seemed just like any other planet, had grown its own life! The Spirits had not intended this, and they took the miracle as a sign that this planet should be watched over above all the rest._

_The first life on the planet was nothing but a Mushroom. No one knows what kind of mushroom it was, so it has been recorded as the First Mushroom. As it grew, it multiplied, and soon many different forms of mushrooms and other plants, such as flowers and beans, evolved. The Star Spirits soon decided that the Mushrooms should have as much life as they or a Luma had, and so they embedded a single Grand Star within the core of the planet. The Star's energy seeped through the earth, giving every type of mushroom an extraordinary power. Two kinds of Mushroom, one white and one brown, gained sapience, becoming the First Toads and the First Goombas. _

"So, are those the things that attacked us?" asked Mario.

"Yup," answered Toad. "Now can you stop interrupting the story?"

"Okay… but why are you named Toad if your species is named Toad?"

"Sarcastic parents."

"Fair enough," said Luigi. "I mean, our last name is Mario!"

_For millennia, Toads and Goombas coexisted in harmony, as the Stars protected them from the darkness, and all was well. Over time, the Grand Star's energy reached other plants, such as the Beans, and created other forms of life, such as the Beanfolk, . Two kingdoms arose: the Mushroom Kingdom, in which Toads and Goombas lived, and the Beanbean Kingdom, in which the Beanfolk lived. Because of the Mushroom folk's presence before anything else, the planet was named the Mushroom World._

_However, after this Golden Era of peace, the sun finally set on paradise. One Power Star, at the far edge of the universe, was lazy and negligent in its work of protecting the universe. It became so indifferent to its duty that one fateful day, it ceased its glow, just for a moment. But in that moment, the darkness saw its opportunity, swarming in, possessing and corrupting the helpless star. From that day forth, it became the Dark Star. Thus the first darkness _

_The Dark Star, driven mad by evil, flew throughout the universe, raining destruction on whatever planet it happened upon, especially targeting places of happiness and love, which it loathed. Its darkness killed many Lumas who tried to stop its senseless destruction. Finally, the Dark Star reached the Mushroom World. As it wreaked havoc on the land, the oldest and wisest Toad of all, whose name was Toadsage, traveled to the planet's core through a secret passage of which only he knew. Toadsage pleaded the Grand Star for help, and the Grand Star answered. It let out a burst of energy so powerful, it vaporized Toadsage, transforming his essence into the first Super Star. His most trusted assistant brought the Super Star to the surface, where he asked the strongest Toad of all to use the power to stop the Dark Star. However, the Strongest Toad was scared and would not do it. _

_Then a young Toad stepped forward. This Toad was meek, short, and fearful, and the other Toads ridiculed him. However, he volunteered to use the Star. Because no one else would do it, the assistant gave him the star. The tiny Toad, whose name was Extoad, confronted the Dark Star. The Dark Star laughed at him, calling him an impudent fool to have challenged him. But at the moment the Dark Star was to strike, Extoad used the Super Star. Its ultimate power protected the Toad, and he valiantly fought the Dark Star. It was a long, hard battle, but in the end, Extoad defeated the Dark Star, allowing the Star Spirits to imprison it within a magic seal, and place it in a secret chamber hidden from the world, never to be seen again. Toads and Goombas alike rejoiced, and Extoad, now called Extoad the Great, was hailed throughout the land until the day he died._

"Um, well, sounds great," Luigi said, "but you still haven't told us who Bowser is yet."

"I'm getting to it," said Toad.

_But the darkness was never completely gone. As a failsafe, the Dark Star had left behind a single drop of darkness on the last planet it had attacked, the now-deserted planet of Kooparia. That darkness lay dormant, until just before the Dark Star was sealed away, it called out to the darkness, and awakened it. The darkness attached itself to the closest object it could find as a host, an empty shell discarded by a long-forgotten inhabitant of Kooparia. The darkness used the shell to create a physical form for itself, becoming the first Koopa, named after the planet on which it was born. A fearsome creature, with darkness flowing through his veins, his appearance brought fear into the hearts of anyone he faced, and he had a mastery of black magic and sorcery. This monstrosity dubbed himself as Morton J. Koopa._

"What?!" Mario exclaimed. "The most fearsome monster in the universe is named _Morton?!_"

"Yeah, it's weird," Toad agreed. "Maybe evil isn't very creative."

_Morton Koopa, using his magic, created hundreds of Koopas, creating the Koopa race, each one with a unique appearance and special powers. He then used his magic to clone every one until there were thousands of each type, and all were loyal to him. But there was one whom he did not clone. This one child, by pure chance, looked just like him. Morton raised this one as his son and heir to his power._

_Once the Koopas had amassed in number, Morton sent his best spies to the Mushroom World. These spies, the Koopa Wizards, had an unparalleled mastery of magic, save Morton himself. They observed all that went on in the world. One disguised himself as a Toad merchant, as he had taken an interest in the Goomba race. He used his powers to find a Goomba with greed in his heart, and persuaded him to join the Koopas with promises of unending riches. The greedy Goomba agreed, and was taken to Kooparia, where he was imprisoned and cloned, creating a never-ending army of evil Goombas._

_With his endless armies, Morton Koopa invaded the Mushroom Kingdom in a mass attack. It was a dark time for all mushroomkind. Cities were razed to the ground, and the evil Koopa established his rule over the planet. _

_However, there was one thing which Morton had overlooked. When the Star Spirits created the universe, they included a failsafe should disaster strike: the Warp Zones. Each led to an alternate dimension, and could only be found in a time of need. When Morton attacked the Mushroom Kingdom, a Warp Zone opened, and through it came a human being, the first in this universe. Her name was Persimmon, and even though she was beautiful and frail, she had an iron will. Calling upon her innocent purity, the girl summoned the most miraculous white magic, that collided with the black magic of Morton, and overcame it, sending the creature flying high into the sky, crashing into Kooparia and exploding it. Thus Morton met his demise. Helpless and without a home, the Koopas and their minions retreated to Dark Land, a desolate area of the planet. The kingdom rejoiced, and Persimmon was crowned sole queen of the kingdom: Queen Persimmon Toadstool. Her royal lineage persists to this day._

_But Morton's son still lived. Still a baby, he was rescued by a Koopa Wizard, named Kamek, who became his caretaker. Even now, Kamek raises the boy in the shadows of Dark Lands, watching, waiting. _

"OK, OK, hold on…" said Mario, finding his voice, "I'm sorry I asked… is there a town nearby?"

"Um, yeah! The capital city, actually," said Toad, slightly confused.

"Why don't we go there, and see what the guy in charge can do about getting us home?" Mario said. Luigi nodded.

"Oh, fine," said Toad. "I guess I got sidetracked with the story… But I never answered your question about Bows-"

"TELL US ON THE WAY," said both brothers, not wanting to hear another huge story.

"Fine, fine…"

And the brothers and their guide set out for town. 


	7. Chapter 7: Royal Pains

**Chapter 7: Royal Pains**

"So, Morton Koopa's son from the story is Bowser," explained Toad, as the three walked down a dirt path up a hill, "and he's as bad as his dad. He's all grown up now, and a few years back, he tried to attack the kingdom with his magic. He had Kamek turn a whole town into bricks with coins inside! Can you believe it? Bricks!"

"Yeah… really interesting," sighed Mario, becoming very bored by the whole thing. "Can we just focus on getting us back home?"

"Yeah, this whole place seems koo-koo-bananas to me," said Luigi, nodding. "I just want to get back to my normal house in a normal town, doing normal work."

"Hey, where are we going, anyway?" asked Mario.

"We're here!" Toad exclaimed, as they reached the top of the hill. "Toad Town!"

From the top of the hill, the brothers had a clear view of a vast expanse of buildings within a large valley. However, all of the buildings were carved out of mushrooms, like Toad's house. Toads of all sizes and colors milled about, working, playing, trading, and chatting. The only thing that wasn't a mushroom was the one thing that the brothers saw first – a magnificent white brick castle, in the center of the town, surrounded by a moat. A large stained-glass window above the gate depicted a beautiful woman.

"Hey, in the window, is that the Persimmon girl you were talking about?" Mario asked.

"No, she's been dead for ages. That's her great-granddaughter, Peach!"

Mario and Luigi deadpanned.

"So, is she in charge?"

"Yeah! She's the princess! If you want to get home, you'll wanna talk to her."

"Okay!" Mario agreed, with renewed vigor. "Let's go meet the princess!"

As they entered the town, the toads around them began to stare and whisper. Mario could make out a few words.

"Humans? Where did they COME from?"

"What's that weirdo Toad doing with those weirdos?"

"I thought Peach was the only human!"

Luigi glanced at Toad. Toad's face was expressionless, but Luigi could tell he'd heard the citizens talking about him, and he was embarrassed. Luigi wondered at this.

The brothers and Toad approached the castle gate, where two black-capped Toads stood, holding staffs.

"Visitors of the castle? State your names and business," said one of them gruffly.

"Well, I'm Toad – "

"Shut it, he wasn't talking to you," snapped the other guard-Toad. "Everyone know who _you_ are, shrimp." Toad huffed, an indignant look on his face.

"Names?"

"Um… I'm Mario Mario," said Mario, "and this is my brother Luigi. We'd like to see the princess, please." Luigi nodded.

"I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over," said the first guard, not looking sorry at all. "Please go about your business elsewhere."

"Wait!" yelped Toad. He ran up to the guard and whispered something in his ear. The guard's eyes widened, and he whispered to the other guard. Both guards stood up straight.

"Very well, due to extenuating circumstances, we will allow you in," said the second guard. "The princess will be notified of your arrival immediately."

Mario and Luigi looked at each other, surprised, then smiled as the guards opened the gate, letting the brothers and Toad into the castle grounds. The large wooden doors parted, and the brothers entered the castle itself, going down a long, ornate hallway.

"What did you tell those guys?" Mario asked Toad.

"Um, uh… I'll tell you later," Toad mumbled, walking a bit faster.

Yet another set of doors stood at the end of the hall. A shorter Toad stood in front of them, holding a standard depicting a red mushroom with eyes.

"Honored guests of the royal house, may I present to you," stated the Toad, in a herald-like fashion, "our sovereign ruler, rightful heir of the royal Persimmon lineage, Princess Peach Toadstool!"

The Toad pushed open the doors. Mario and Luigi gawked. They had never seen anyplace this fancy in their lives. It was a gigantic throne room, with humongous stained glass windows, and many small throne-like chairs where many regally dressed Toads sat. Luigi marveled at the gold, jewels, and expensive finery everywhere around the room. But Mario was entranced by the largest throne, huge and golden, because sitting in it was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her pale skin accented her bright blue eyes and long, blonde hair. She wore an elegant, pink dress with a blue brooch on her chest. When Mario saw her golden tiara, he knew she must be Princess Peach herself. Mario was in love.

"Y-your majesty," Mario stammered, removing his hat and bowing. Luigi did the same.

"Might you two gentlemen be Mario and Luigi?" the princess asked, with a regal air.

"T-that's us!" Luigi exclaimed. "How did you know our names?"

"Toadsworth related the information you told the guards to me." She gestured towards an elderly, brown-capped Toad with a mustache sitting on her right. "Thank you, mistress Peach!" he said, seeming satisfied with himself.

"So, your highness, um, we've gotten a bit lost," said Mario, as he told the princess and her court his and Luigi's whole story.

"So, masters Mario, you say you came here through a large pipe?" said Toadsworth. "That would suggest you entered a Warp Zone, but that has not happened in hundreds of years, has it not?" The court murmured, heads nodding. "Why do you infer it would happen now, at this time of peace?"

"We don't know, sir," said Luigi. "All we want is to go back home."

"Well, if you truly came through a Warp Zone, I'm afraid the only way to return is to go through another," said Toadsworth. Mario and Luigi's hearts sank.

"So what should we do now?" asked Mario.

But before Toadsworth could answer, the doors flew open with a bang, and the herald Toad raced in, out of breath. He tried to speak, but he was too winded.

"Keh.. koo – hah…" he gasped.

"Out with it, good man!" Toadsworth exclaimed.

"KING KOOPA!" screamed the herald.

At that very moment, a horde of Koopas charged in the doors. Mario and Luigi, taken by surprise, had no time to try out their Super Boots, as the Koopas grabbed them and forced them down. Screams rang out as the Koopas did the same to the whole court, except Peach, who they surrounded without touching. She looked frightened, shocked.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" shouted Toadsworth, struggling against his captors.

Suddenly, a huge CRASH resounded as the far window shattered into a cloud of dust, as something had just broken through it. The Koopas cheered as the dust settled and Mario saw… a ship?!

The bow of a huge ship protruded through the giant hole. As Mario looked closer, he saw that there was no sail, replaced by a propeller on the mast. _An airship?_ A figurehead portrayed the gruesome face of… What was that? A dragon?

As the brothers stared, two figures walked to the bow of the ship and stood there, grinning menacingly. One was small and robed in blue, carrying a large wand. The other made Mario's stomach churn. He looked exactly like the figurehead, but instead of a dragon's body, he had the scaly body of a huge turtle, standing upright. His shell was covered in sharp spikes, and his malicious smile made Luigi shiver and struggle even more.

But he wasn't looking at them. His gaze was directed towards Peach. The princess's shock had turned to outrage.

"PEEEEEAAAAACCHHH!" the monster roared.

"King Bowser Koopa!" she shouted over the din of the Koopas. "What right have you to invade my castle?"

"Your castle?" asked Bowser, pretending to be shocked. "Why I had _absolutely_ no idea! Isn't that right, boys?"

The Koopas laughed, a sound comparable to nails on a blackboard. Mario and Luigi winced.

"As sovereign leader of the Mushroom Kingdom, I order you to leave at once!" shouted Peach quite forcefully. She stared at Bowser with a look of hate.

"Alright," Bowser shrugged, never stopping grinning, "maybe I will. NOW, KAMEK!"

The robed figure cackled, brandishing his wand. "REGIS CAPTURA!"

A bolt of white light shot from the wand, straight at Peach. Too late to dodge it, Peach was hit by the beam, and with a "CRACK!" she was knocked unconscious. A clear sphere of energy surrounded her, and as Kamek lifted his wand, the sphere hovered in the air and zoomed below the decks of the airship. Toadsworth and the court immediately began screaming.

"NO, PRINCESS!"

"YOU BEAST!"

"LET HER GO!"

Toadsworth broke free of his captors, rushing at Bowser, shouting "GIVE HER BACK, FIEND!" But with a wave of his wand, Kamek immobilized him, tossing him too into the hull of the ship.

"Well, as promised, I'll be leaving! To Dark Land!" laughed Bowser, as Kamek, with a puff of smoke, teleported to the helm of the ship, and giving the wheel a spin, the airship began to pull away.

"_Consider my father avenged!_" he shouted behind him. The Koopas cheered, dropping their prisoners and flooding out the broken window in pursuit of the ship.

The whole assembly stood shocked. Then chaos erupted. Everyone began screaming and running in circles. Mario, who was in love with the princess at first sight, was outraged. "QUIET!" he shouted, startling the Toads. "We can't let that no-good monster get away with this!"

"Um, yes we can…" stuttered Luigi, shivering in fear. "We j-just did!"

"No, not like that!" yelled Mario. "We need to rescue her!"

"Agreed!" shouted a blue Toad with glasses, brushing rubble off himself. "But who will do it?"

"Anyone who could rescue the beloved princess from Bowser is the bravest man alive!" exclaimed a pink Toad girl with braids. "Who knows what horrible things that villain could do to her?!"

The court began to mumble.

"Yes, who?"

"We must get her back, and Toadsworth too!"

"Who will do it?"

"Who?"

Everyone was silent, waiting for someone to be brave enough to volunteer.

"I'll do it," said Mario, "and my brother Luigi too."

"WHAT!?" gasped Luigi. "Mario, are you out of your mind? Did you even SEE that guy?! He had horns, and t-teeth, and claws, and spikes, and death-y thingies, and – "

Mario slapped him.

"Luigi, did you even SEE that princess? I don't know about you, but I think she's one heck of a girl! If we do this, we get the girl, and we get to be heroes! Haven't you ever dreamed of being more than plumbers?"

Luigi looked uncertain.

"Plus, we have superpowers!" said Mario, gesturing at his boots. "What could Bowser throw at us that we can't handle now? We're plumbers! They break it, _we fix it_."

Luigi sighed, then took a deep breath. "Alright: I'm in."

The Toads cheered.

"Wait! I'll go too!" shouted another voice. It was Toad! The others looked at him, then burst out laughing.

"You? Go with them?"

"You're a shrimp!"

"You'll get pulverized!"

Toad reddened, looking down at the ground. "I may be sh – um, vertically challenged – but I'm no chicken, and I'm gonna prove it!"

Luigi elbowed Mario. "Mario, let him come with us! He knows what Bowser has for minions, and we don't. He can tell us how to beat them!"

Mario nodded. "OK, everyone," he yelled, silencing the Toads. "If Toad wants to come, he can come!"

Toad beamed. "Yessss!" he shouted, pumping his fist in the air. The brothers couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm. Then they remembered the task at hand, and they began to get serious.

"So, where are the Koopas taking Peach?" Mario asked the glasses Toad.

"To his fortress in Dark Land, through the oceans, jungle, glaciers, and magma fields, about 10,000 miles away," answered the Toad.

"Wh… what?" stuttered Mario.

**The real adventure begins!**


	8. Chapter 8: Follow that Airship!

**Chapter 8: Follow That Airship!**

Cheered on by Toad Town's citizens, Mario and Luigi zoomed down the dirt road out of Toad Town, riding borrowed go-karts. These go-karts, being powered by Fuelshrooms, could travel as fast as a speeding Bullet Bill, or so the Toad who ran the kart rental had told them. As they zoomed through town, they heard many cheers:

"Save the princess!"

"Go, guys!"

"Who are they, anyway?"

So far, the karts were doing just fine, as the brothers followed Toad, who bounced ahead in his giant shoe, tracing the path of Bowser's airship.

"Bowser's airship is so huge, it can't fly very fast," shouted Toad to the brothers over the roar of the karts, "so it can't have gone far!"

"Where do you think it went?" shouted Luigi.

"It's heading for Dark Land! It's gotta pass through the Hills first!"

"What hills?" asked Mario, not seeing any ahead.

"Around the bend! The Mush Hills!"

Toad and the brothers raced around a hairpin turn, and Mario and Luigi immediately knew what Toad was talking about. The Mush Hills loomed before them: tall, steep hills covered in green grass and loads of mushrooms. Mario gasped. In the distance, he could see a flying ship, surrounded by dark clouds.

"THERE IT IS!" he shouted, flooring the gas. He sped past Toad.

"Hey! Wait for me!" yelled Luigi. He sped up to keep up.

"Wait for US, you mean!" yelled Toad, hopping faster.

The road swerved out of the hills and away from the airship, so the karts left the road, driving through the grass, up hills, down hills, and all the while getting closer to the airship.

The Koopa King leaned back in his throne, glancing out the window of the airship captain's cabin. His mild smirk betrayed his sheer joy inside – he'd done it! He'd given those Toad scumbags a sucker punch! Without their ruler, they would be powerless to stop him from invading, conquering their happy little kingdom, and turning them all into his slaves. Bowser grinned at the thought. His father's dream was about to become reality.

Suddenly, the door of the cabin burst open. "Lord Bowser!" shrieked Kamek. Bowser jumped. "KAMEK!" he roared in his most fearsome voice, "I TOLD YOU NEVER TO STARTLE ME LIKE THAT!"

"Endless apologies, highness," groveled Kamek, kneeling. "But it's urgent! I had to alert you at once!"

"Fine, what is it?" Bowser grumbled.

"We're being followed!"

"WHAAAAAAT!?" Bowser leaped out of his throne. "Show me! Those Toads could never have sent a rescue party this quickly! They're too indecisive!"

With a wave of his wand, Kamek conjured a crystal ball, which Bowser grabbed. In it, he could see Mario, Luigi, and Toad riding towards them over the hills.

"Humans!?" Bowser exclaimed. "Where'd they come from?"

"My spying spells tell me that they've come from a Warp Zone," said Kamek, "and it seems that the fat red one is enamored with the princess."

"Aha!" chuckled Bowser. "He wants to save the damsel and be the hero, eh? Like that Extoad pest?" He winked at Kamek. "Call in the Koopalings."

Kamek cackled, vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Bowser smiled maliciously. "Heroes are overrated."

"We're getting close!" shouted Toad, as the karts popped over what felt like the hundredth hill. The kart's fuel levels were dwindling. "As soon as we reach the next hill, I'll throw the grappling line!"

Mario and Luigi gave a thumbs-up, the signal that they understood. Suddenly, Luigi noticed a shadow over his kart. He looked up. He looked over his shoulder.

His eyes went as wide as dinner plates.

"MARIO!" he shouted.

"What?" Mario asked.

"WE'VE GOT COMPANY!"

A second airship, smaller than the first but still huge, loomed directly behind them in the sky. As the brothers gaped, it turned to the right, turning its side towards the karts and the shoe. A side full of cannons.

"WATCH OUT!" yelled Toad. "They've got Bullet Bills!"

As if on cue, every cannon fired. A large, black missile with eyes shot out of each one, and turned towards the karts!

"The missiles can see us!?" yelled Mario.

"Dodge 'em!" Toad shouted. "They'll total the karts!"

The Bullet Bills were gaining, and Mario and Luigi began zigzagging left and right, trying to shake them off their trail. As they swerved through the hills, the Bills began smashing into the steep hillsides, exploding. Soon, there was only one left.

"Luigi! You go left, I go right!" Mario yelled.

As the brothers approached a huge hill, Luigi turned left, Mario turned right, and the Bill, not knowing which way to go, kept going straight.

BOOM! The Bill exploded, and the brothers screeched to a halt.

"All right!" Toad shouted, cheering. Then, he went pale. "Um, guys? One thing I forgot to tell you about Bowser…"

"What?" asked Mario, getting nervous.

"He made some minions of his own."

Before Mario had a chance to realize what Toad meant, a huge WHAM resounded as seven large things hit the ground, upending the karts and tossing the brothers and Toad head over heels. As the dust settled, Mario stared at seven creatures that resembled Bowser, but smaller, differently colored, and with different hair.

"HE HAD KIDS!?" gawked the brothers.

The creatures laughed.

"We're the Koopalings!" declared a short one with a large blue mohawk.

"We're the heirs of the Koopa line!" said a female one with a bow.

"And we're here to MOP THE FLOOR WITH YA!" yelled two heavyset ones, one pink and one black.

The Koopalings charged. Mario and Luigi, panicking, ran in separate directions, while Toad jumped high above their heads.

"Use your Super Boots!" yelled Toad to the brothers. "Their heads are unprotected!"

Mario, remembering that he now had superpowers, turned to face the Koopas. With a mighty leap, he flew into the air… and came down right on top of a tall green one with glasses.

"YOWWWW!" the Koopaling shouted. He jumped up and flipped over, withdrawing into his shell and beginning to spin like a top. Luigi, newly confident, jumped at a tiny one balancing on a ball. But this one whipped out a magic wand, and conjured another ball, hurling it into Luigi's face. Luigi was instantly bounced back by 10 feet, landing directly on the green one's spiked shell.

"AAAAARGH!" screamed Luigi, jumping up, grabbing his bottom, and running around like a maniac. But Toad caught up to him, grabbed him, held him down, and slapped him.

"GET A GRIP, MAN!" yelled Toad. "This is battle!"

"OH, LIKE I'VE BEEN IN A BATTLE BEFORE!?" shouted Luigi.

"GUYS!" yelled Mario, stifling them both. "Come on! We need to board that airship, so let's work as a TEAM!" They nodded.

"Then let's-a go!"

The three leaped into action. Luigi ran circles around them, drawing their fire, while Toad and Mario bounced from head to head, until all of them lay on the ground, dazed and unconscious. Mario, Luigi, and Toad cheered, high-fiving each other. "Now let's go board that airship!" declared Mario.

"NOT SO FAST!" screeched a voice from nowhere. In a flash, Kamek appeared, riding a broomstick and smiling menacingly.

"You!" Mario shouted, recognizing him. "Where's the princess!?"

"I am here to inform you meddling pests that the princess is NONE OF YOUR STINKING BUSINESS!" Kamek yelled in a grating voice. "By winning this battle, you have proved only that you are extremely annoying to Lord Bowser, and therefore, to me. Will you leave your princess without struggle, to stop your inconvenience?"

"NEVER!" shouted Mario and Toad. Luigi just shivered.

"Very well," Kamek grinned, "we'll do this the hard way." From his robes, he whipped out his magic wand. "PESTULATIS DISPELAE!"

Out of nowhere, a gale-force wind ripped through the hills, and even as they tried to hold onto something, the brothers and Toad were blown off their feet, twirling round and round in the whirlwind.

"MARIO!" shouted Luigi.

"LUIGI!" screamed Mario.

"GUYS!" yelled Toad.

The three got one last glimpse of each other, each as panicked as the other, before the wind reversed, flinging each of the three in a different direction.

From the airship, deep satisfied laughter rang out.


	9. Chapter 9: Galaxy Defenders

**Chapter 9: Galaxy Defenders**

Mario blinked, slowly opening his eyes. "Uggh… Luigi?" he asked, sensing someone standing over him. "I had the weirdest dream and – "

"Luigi? So close, man! Name's Lubba!"

Mario suddenly remembered everything that had just happened. His eyes snapped open to see a large purple face smiling inches away from his own.

"WAAAUGH!" Mario gasped, jumping backwards. The face chuckled.

"Whoops!" said Lubba, "Didn't mean to startle ya! You been through a lot lately, right?"

"Um, yeah…" Mario eyed the odd creature. Lubba floated above the ground, a pudgy, star-shaped purple blob. "Um, do I know you?"

"Not remotely!" But I been watching ya from the second Kamek blasted you off. Really did a number on you and your friends."

"Oh my gosh!" gasped Mario. "Luigi! Toad! Where are they!? I need to find them!" Mario realized something. "Wait, where am I?"

"Look up!" said Lubba.

Mario looked up, expecting to see blue sky overhead. He did a double take as he saw… the earth, from a birds' eye view.

"Wha…?" he stammered.

Lubba guffawed. "Welcome to the Comet Observatory!"

Mario took in his surroundings. He was on a giant space station, with flowers growing in little flowerbeds, water flowing, and countless more star-shaped things flying around. "Let me guess," he said, "my space physics don't apply here?"

"Bingo."

"So how'd you know where I came from?" Mario asked. "I mean, I popped out of a pipe in a weird cave in the middle of some hills! How'd you know I came from a different dimension?"

"Let me take you to the Lady – she'll explain everything better than I could, I tell ya!"

"What lady?" Mario asked, excited. "Peach?"

"Nope!" Lubba replied. "You ain't met this one yet."

They walked towards the center of the Observatory, where they came to a small wooden door.

"Polari!" Lubba shouted. "Our guest has arrived! Open up!"

The door opened, and a small black star zipped out, looking Mario up and down.

"Aha, yes!" the star exclaimed. "Mistress Rosalina will be happy to see that you've awakened. Please, step inside."

Mario followed Polari through the door, and into a dimly lit room. From the bookshelves lining the walls, Mario could tell that it was a library. But his eyes were drawn to the center of the room, where a pale blue light shined from a small ornate chair, its back turned towards him. Someone was sitting in it.

"The hour has finally come, has it?" a sweet and light voice said from the figure in the chair. As he heard the voice, all of Mario's fears and worries melted away. He felt perfectly calm and relaxed.

"This galaxy, which I have worked so long to protect, has finally come under attack…" the voice continued, "and when the attack comes, I can do nothing to stop it. But when all hope is lost, of all things, the stars choose you to confront the evil."

The figure stood up and turned around. Mario was immediately stricken by the beautiful woman he saw in front of him, hair a pale blonde, bangs obscuring one blue eye, and wearing a pale teal dress. She held a wand in one hand, and cradled a silver star in the other. The star looked peaceful and happy to Mario, though he didn't know how he could tell that.

"I am Rosalina, guardian of this galaxy and all others," she said, "and you are Mario Mario, the one chosen by the stars." She smiled warmly. "I am honored to make your acquaintance."

**Yeah, it's a quickie. Stay tuned!**


	10. Chapter 10: The Professor is In

**Chapter 10: The Professor is In**

Luigi blinked groggily. Memories swirled around his head in a jumbled mess, and he couldn't seem to remember what had happened to him. Suddenly, he saw the image of Mario, being flung away from him in a whirlwind. Then everything snapped in place. He panicked.

"MARIO!" Luigi screamed, bolting upright. "Where are you?!"

"Aha!" exclaimed a voice. "Our visitor awakes! Don't worry, you're safe for now!"

Luigi calmed down enough to look at where he was. He was sitting on a table in a large, dim room. He was totally surrounded by gadgets and gizmos of all kinds, lying on the floor, cluttering tables, and hanging on walls.

"Who's there?" asked Luigi timidly.

From behind a rather large machine, a funny little man stepped out. He had a head too large for his body, a single tuft of white hair on his head, a lab coat, and glasses with swirls for lenses. Though he looked weird, he smiled in a friendly way, and Luigi did indeed feel safe.

"Greetings and salutations, Luigi! My name is Professor Elvin Gadd, and I am pleased to make your acquaintance," said Professor Elvin Gadd. "But please, call me E. Gadd."

"Um, nice to meet you too…?" said Luigi, shaking his hand. "Wait- how do you know my name?"

"I found your business card in your pocket., and you have a large L on your hat, so it wasn't exactly hard."

"Where am I?"

"In my laboratory!" said Gadd. "I am a scientist and what you may call an inventor. I create these machines to help me carry out my experiments and execute many practical tasks, yes!" E. Gadd seemed to be very happy to have someone to talk to.

"How exactly did I get here?" asked Luigi.

"Well, I was about to ask you the same question! After all, it was you who fell out of the sky!"

"WHAT?!"

"I was just outside, taking dirt samples for a test of my new invention, the SoilSucker 4000!" explained Gadd, holding up what looked like a blender. "It takes soil in the top, and separates it into separate components, like rocks, sediment - "

"That's nice," interrupted Luigi, noticing Gadd's train of thought derailing. "What does this have to do with me?"

"Oh yes," said E. Gadd, tossing the SoilSucker aside. "I was taking dirt samples, when I heard the most peculiar sound – a kind of boom, or maybe a KA-POW, or – "

"Keep going…"

"Yes. I heard this noise, and I looked around to see what it is. Then I looked up, and I saw a bright green thing coming directly towards me. I backed away to a safe distance, the thing landed with a bang, and I find – it's a person!"

"So, I fell from the sky?"

"Right as rockets!" Gadd exclaimed. "I took you inside, and you didn't wake up for a few hours at least. Now, why did you fall out of the sky, exactly?"

Luigi told him everything he remembered, right up to Kamek's whirlwind that separated him from Mario. "And now I miss Mario," said Luigi. "Sure he was a little bossy at times, but he's the only family I've ever had. I feel so weak and helpless without him."

"Truly, a fascinating story!" said E. Gadd, who had never once looked away as Luigi was talking. "So you too came from another dimension!"

"What?!" started Luigi. "You're from the real world too?"

"Not quite. In all probability, I'm from an alternate version of your world, just as the Mushroom Kingdom is another version. Also, I didn't come here by Warp Pipe."

"How'd you get here then?" asked Luigi. "Toad said only the Warp Pipes connected to other dimensions."

"That's because only I know about the way I got in!" E. Gadd explained. "In my world, everyone is a scientist of some kind. That's how I know how to build gadgets, you see. My crowning achievement, however, was none of the machines you see here. It was an interdimensional portal projector. If it worked, I would be one of the greatest people in the world. But the only way to test it would be to go through it myself. You couldn't get anyone to do favors for you in my world. So I selected a dimention at random to which to travel, went through the portal, and wound up at this exact spot." He pointed to a bare space on the floor, marked by an X of duct tape. "At first, I was ecstatic, since I would become the greatest scientist ever. However, as I was about to go back, Kamek and his minions attacked. He'd detected the energy from the portal, you see. The bad guys took my portal, leaving me stuck here. And here I am still."

"Wow." Luigi gaped. "Has Kamek been using the portal to raid other dimensions?" He shuddered at the thought.

"He couldn't," smiled E. Gadd. "I still have the key." He produced a shiny silver card from his pocket. Luigi sighed in relief.

"So, Luigi," said Gadd, "We have a lot in common, apparently, being fellow dimension-travelers and all. I would be delighted to help you find your brother and Toad."

"You mean it?" Luigi jumped up. "Oh, thank you, E. Gadd! But how do you think you'll do it?"

"Here's my plan," explained E. Gadd. "I have a teleportation device on hand that'll send you straight to your brother Mario. However, it needs an immense amount of power. The only thing around here that can give us that power is the magic Crown Jewel, which, fortunately, can be found not 50 yards away."

"Awesome!" cried Luigi.

"However," E. Gadd contradicted, "the Jewel is in the possession of King Boo, the undead ruler of the ghosts living in the haunted mansion not 50 yards away."

"G-g-g-GHOSTS?!" Luigi turned white as a sheet and dived under a table.

"Yup," Gadd said. "Mushroom Kingdom logic, huh?"


	11. Chapter 11: Egg-ceptional

**Chapter 11: Egg-ceptional**

Toad groaned, feeling a painful bump on his head. He looked around, uncertain where he was. He was sitting in a clearing in an immense forest, with trees nearly 60 feet tall on all sides. Usually, he'd be able to identify his surroundings, but Toad had just been flung thousands of miles by a magic whirlwind, so he wasn't thinking quite straight. All he could think was, _How will I get back home again?_

Suddenly, he heard rustling leaves close by. Toad's survival instinct kicked in, and he dove behind a nearby bush. The noise came closer, and Toad began to hear muffled voices:

"Hee hee hee…"

"The boss'll be so happy with us… oh boy…"

"Guys, if we get this back to the boss, it's _promotion city_!"

Toad gasped. He knew the voices all too well. If he was right, then that would mean…

Just as he feared, out of the woods came three creatures he'd wished he'd never have to see again: a Goomba wearing a blue cap and uniform, a green-clad creature with a mask and a backpack, and a red-shelled winged Koopa with a bucket on his head. Private Goomp, Sergeant Guy, and Corporal Paraplonk: Bowser's royal guard. All of them were chuckling like they'd just seen Kamek in his underwear.

Paraplonk, the flying Koopa, hoisted a giant white egg with green spots. "With this, just think!" he said excitedly. "Bowser'll have his own giant dino army!"

"And when we're the reason why," exclaimed Goomp, "we'll be Bowser's favorite minions ever!"

"Maybe even more important than Kamek!" added Sergeant Guy. All three squealed in delight. Toad winced. He couldn't let them get away with another dastardly plot. _Never again._

"NOT SO FAST!" Toad shouted, leaping out from the bush. The royal guard shouted, jumping back in fright. Then Sergeant Guy looked closer.

"Hold it… it's a Toad!" he chuckled. "It's OK, guys, he's harmless."

Goomp and Paraplonk laughed, coming out from the tree they'd dove behind.

"Stay right where you are," Toad growled. "You won't get away with this."

"With what?" Paraplonk taunted, holding up the egg. "This little thing that'll set us for life?"

"YOU'LL PAY!" Toad snapped, lunging full force at Paraplonk. The Koopa recoiled, dodging the tackle and causing Toad to fly into a tree.

"Hey, what gives?" said Goomp, confused. "What's this guy's beef? Usually Toads think we're harmless and leave us alone!"

"Wait a minute… oh HO HO!" Paraplonk exclaimed. "This is the Toad that got us promoted the first time!"

"Oh YEAH!" said Sergeant Guy. "I remember! He tried to stop us from stealing the magic wand from the Toad Town Museum!"

"And he epically failed, and we got away with the wand, and finally got promoted from janitors!" added Goomp. "Our finest moment!"

"SHUT UP!" Toad yelled. "You made me the laughingstock of Toad Town! I'm not going to let you escape me again!"

"Oh yeah?" snickered Sergeant Guy. "You and what army?" All three laughed.

Toad looked around frantically. _There!_ A golden block with a question mark on it hovered above the trees. All he needed was a distraction…

"Hey, look over there!" Toad yelled to the guards. "It's Kamek in his underwear!"

"SERIOUSLY? Where!?" they all squealed, looking around everywhere.

Quickly, Toad jumped up the tree, swinging from branch to branch.

"Hey…" said Paraplonk, "where's the Toad?"

Just as the royal guard looked up, Toad smacked the question block, sending a purple and yellow plant with two flowers out of the top. He grabbed it, and immediately disappeared in a purple flash. When the light dimmed, seven copies of Toad stood next to him.

The guards' smiles vanished.

With a war cry, the eight Toads descended onto the panicking guards. Fists flew, and in roughly 6 seconds, Goomp, Paraplonk, and Guy lay in a heap, unconscious.

"YES!" cheered the Toads, as all of them but the original vanished. Basking in his glory, he didn't immediately notice the abandoned green-and-white egg. Then he heard the cracking noise.

He turned just in time to see a tiny, green, and unbearably cute dinosaur hatch from the egg.

"Yoshi!" it squeaked.

"Oh, man…" groaned Toad.


End file.
